Jump to content

New Jersey MMA - Openweight Creation Tournament (League)


Alfred

Recommended Posts

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - Fight Schedule



Group A



Week 1 (12th May 2018)



Rogerio De Souza vs. Early Grayce


Ruud Huisbrink vs. Gargan Morus


Bye Week: Blaise Cailloux



Week 2 (26th May 2018)



Early Grayce vs. Ruud Huisbrink


Blaise Cailloux vs. Rogerio De Souza


Bye Week: Gargan Morus



Week 3 (9th June 2018)



Ruud Huisbrink vs. Blaise Cailloux


Gargan Morus vs. Early Grayce


Bye Week: Rogerio De Souza



Week 4 (23rd June 2018)



Blaise Cailloux vs. Gargan Morus


Rogerio De Souza vs. Ruud Huisbrink


Bye Week: Early Grayce



Week 5 (7th July 2018)



Gargan Morus vs. Rogerio De Souza


Early Grayce vs. Blaise Cailloux


Bye Week: Ruud Huisbrink


  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - Fight Schedule



Group B



Week 1 (12th May 2018)



Ben Reed vs. Antoine Pierre


Violet Dawson vs. Dreamiest Panda


Bye Week: Manager Yanic



Week 2 (26th May 2018)



Antoine Pierre vs. Violet Dawson


Manager Yanic vs. Ben Reed


Bye Week: Dreamiest Panda



Week 3 (9th June 2018)



Violet Dawson vs. Manager Yanic


Dreamiest Panda vs Antoine Pierre


Bye Week: Ben Reed



Week 4 (23rd June 2018)



Manager Yanic vs. Dreamiest Panda


Ben Reed vs. Violet Dawson


Bye Week: Antoine Pierre



Week 5 (7th July 2018)



Dreamiest Panda vs. Ben Reed


Antoine Pierre vs. Manager Yanic


Bye Week: Violet Dawson


  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - Fight Schedule



Group C



Week 1 (12th May 2018)



Check Conga vs. James Isaac Abraham


Antonio Kirby vs. Zou Li


Bye Week: Ed Wood



Week 2 (26th May 2018)



James Isaac Abraham vs. Antonio Kirby


Ed Wood vs. Check Conga


Bye Week: Zou Li



Week 3 (9th June 2018)



Antonio Kirby vs. Ed Wood


Zou Li vs. James Isaac Abraham


Bye Week: Check Conga



Week 4 (23rd June 2018)



Ed Wood vs. Zou Li


Check Conga vs. Antonio Kirby


Bye Week: James Isaac Abraham



Week 5 (7th July 2018)



Zou Li vs. Check Conga


James Isaac Abraham vs. Ed Wood


Bye Week: Antonio Kirby


  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - Fight Schedule



Group D



Week 1 (12th May 2018)



Piotr Maczynski vs. Robert Burner


Richard Volg vs. Kenji Kozlov


Bye Week: Barry Bludgeon



Week 2 (26th May 2018)



Robert Burner vs. Richard Volg


Barry Bludgeon vs. Piotr Maczynski


Bye Week: Kenji Kozlov



Week 3 (9th June 2018)



Richard Volg vs. Barry Bludgeon


Kenji Kozlov vs. Robert Burner


Bye Week: Piotr Maczynski



Week 4 (23rd June 2018)



Barry Bludgeon vs. Kenji Kozlov


Piotr Maczynski vs. Richard Volg


Bye Week: Robert Burner



Week 5 (7th July 2018)



Kenji Kozlov vs. Piotr Maczynski


Robert Burner vs. Barry Bludgeon


Bye Week: Richard Volg


  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - Group Stage Summary




With just under two weeks to go until we kick off the very first NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix we begin to take a closer look at the fighters and managers involved. Also, we look at the group draw and give our early predictions for their chances of success in these group qualifying stages.



Group A



Blaise Cailloux (Wonderful Wrestler, Blue Belt BJJ, 210lbs)


(Emily Chanet – Best Rank 93)



Balise Cailloux is a light heavyweight wrestler from Monaco who has already earned his Blue belt in BJJ. With his manager’s known pedigree in tournaments and the fact that Cailloux will benefit from the early bye week it’s impossible for us not to consider him a favourite to qualify from this group. There could be a little wrestler kryptonite in this group however in the form of BJJ Brown Belt Rogerio De Souza but if Cailloux can navigate his way past that obstacle his next biggest challenge could be a mirror match with fellow wrestler Early Grayce who will likely have around 10lbs weight advantage. Cailloux has also been tested in combat where he picked up an 18 second submission in the QFC system.



Toughest Fight: Rogerio De Souza


Fight to Watch: Early Grayce


Early Prediction: 1st Place in Group A.



Rogerio De Souza (BJJ Brown Belt, 196lbs)


(John Pezao – Best Rank 122)



Next up is Rogerio De Souza, another light heavyweight hailing from Rio de Janerio, Brazil. At an early glance De Souza is in for a very tough time in this group as a pure BJJ fighter with no noticeable wrestling or striking although he just may have lucked out in being group amongst two other wrestlers and could look to score some points there. He will however face off against at least two stand up fighters and as De Souza has already found out after a quick 5 second KO in the QFC, it is those match ups in which De Souza will find toughest.



Toughest Fight: Ruud Huisbrink


Fight to Watch: Early Grayce


Early Prediction: 5th Place in Group A



Ruud Huisbrink (Superb Muay Thai, Feeble Wrestling, 277lbs)


(Karl Binew - Best Rank 225)



From Rotterdam, Holland is Ruud Huisbrink who is one of only a handful of hulking heavyweights in this tournament. He looks to be primarily a Muay Thai practitioner though he has a feeble amount of wrestling no doubt in order to help him stay on his feet. With two other lighter wrestlers in the group that may be difficult and Huisbrink will likely have to finish quickly if he is to pick up points in those match ups. In his other two match ups Huisbrink looks comfortable and will no doubt be looking to pick up maximum points against BJJ fighter Rogerio De Souza. One fight that we are very excited for is against fellow striker Gargan Morus which should be a great scrap.



Toughest Fight: Blaise Cailloux


Fight to Watch: Gargan Morus


Early Prediction: 3rd Place in Group A



Gargan Morus (Respectable Muay Thai and Wrestling, 221lbs)


(Marcus Shakovsky – Best Rank 181)



The second of two strikers in Group A is Gargan Morus, a large light-heavyweight from Ghurl, Bhutan. Morus enters the tournament with both respectable Muay Thai and Wrestling and it will be interesting to see if the extra time spent on the wrestling mat will help him against the two other specialist wrestlers in the group. Without knowing much about these fighters we can only speculate upon game plans and tactics and depending on what way Morus has geared his training towards it could really change our opinion of his chances against each fighter in the group. An early opinion however is that he could find himself a jack of all trades against a group of experts.



Toughest Fight: Blaise Cailloux


Fight to Watch: Ruud Huisbrink


Early Prediction: 4th Place in Group A



Early Grayce (Superb Wrestler, Blue Belt BJJ, 222lbs)


(Petro Farantini – Best Rank 1)



Rounding out Group A is superb wrestler and BJJ Blue Belt Early Grayce who is guided by an extremely experienced former #1 ranked manager. Grayce, hailing from Lexington, Kentucky, looks to be an early favourite in the group who will likely find his toughest match up against fellow wrestler Blaise Cailloux and possibly BJJ Brown Belt Rogerio De Souza. Grayce has already been tested and looked to be everything you could imagine. Strong takedown, Solid chin and brutal ground and pound. Grayce looks to be a very competitive fighter in this tournament.



Toughest Fight: Rogerio De Souza


Fight to Watch: Blaise Cailloux


Early Prediction: 2nd Place in Group A.



Group B



Manager Yanic (Wonderful wrestler, 205lbs)


(Larry Hawk - Best Rank 174)



Our first fighter out of Group B is the light-heavyweight wrestler from Reynosa, Mexico Manager Yanic. Yanic is guided by manager Larry Hawk who has a decent amount of creation tournament experience and is likely to bring a solid game plan with Yanic though it is going be a tough road to qualify with most of the others fighters in the group having at least a decent amount of wrestling. His toughest fight is likely to come from BJJ Purple Belt Antoine Pierre but the most interesting will be a mirror match of sorts against giant wrestler Dreamiest Panda. Yanic benefits from an early bye week and will have some extra time to scout his future opponents and plan accordingly giving him a good advantage overall.



Toughest Fight: Antoine Pierre


Fight to Watch: Dreamiest Panda


Early Prediction: 2nd in Group B



Ben Reed (Superb Muay Thai, Feeble Wrestling, 160lbs)


(Thaddeus Banks - Best Rank 396)



Next is Australian Thai Boxer Ben Reed. Reed is the lightest fighter in the competition at 160lbs and he may be hoping to blitz his opponents with lightening fast speed but in a group full of big wrestlers he may find himself wishing he had a little more weight behind his punches. He does posses some feeble wrestling however and that could make a big difference in those difficult match ups but overall the most anticipated showdown will be against fellow Muay Thai fighter Violet Dawson.



Toughest Fight: Dreamiest Panda


Fight to Watch: Violet Dawson


Early Prediction: 5th Place in Group B



Violet Dawson (Wonderful Muay Thai, 189lbs)


(Raichu Kong - Best Rank 337)



From Arundel, USA and fighting out of Las Vegas is small middleweight Violet Dawson. Dawson is coming into this tournament with some wonderful Muay Thai skills and currently little else so it’s likely that we see Dawson rigorously training his wrestling as much as time will allow over the coming weeks. His biggest tests will come against the wrestlers of the group and it will be imperative to get some points in those match ups if he is to survive the group stage but his nemesis in the group is likely to be striker Ben Reed



Toughest Fight: Manager Yanic


Fight to Watch: Ben Reed


Early Prediction: 4th Place in Group B



Dreamiest Panda (Wonderful Wrestling, BJJ Blue Belt, 300lbs)


(Pika Choo - Best Rank 59)



Dreamiest Panda from Tokyo, Japan is the heaviest competitor in the tournament at 300lbs though at only 150cm he will definitely be drawing some gasps from the crowd when he makes his first appearance. Panda is a wrestler first and foremost but has developed his jiu-jitsu to Blue Belt level already and will no doubt be a threat in the group. His toughest fight could be against purple belt Antoine Pierre but his big showdown will be against fellow wrestler Manager Yanic and the extra weight could really hurt his chances in that one where getting the early take down will be key



Toughest Fight: Antoine Pierre


Fight to Watch: Manager Yanic


Early Prediction: 3rd Place in Group B



Antoine Pierre (Competent Wrestling, Purple Belt in BJJ)


(Ibrahim Camara - Best Rank 7)



Our final competitor rounding out Group B is Haitian submission wrestler Antoine Pierre. Pierre is a solid light-heavyweight who needs to cut every pound to make the 205lbs limit and with a competent level of wrestling and a Purple Belt in BJJ could be the man to beat in this group. Bolstering that opinion is the fact that Pierre is guided by a former Top 10 manager who must know a thing or two about winning although Pierre got into the competition a little later then everyone else and as such could be playing catch up early on.


Pierre could be kryptonite to wrestlers Panda and Yanic but depending on his own takedown abilities could struggle against the strikers of the group.


Pierre will also be bringing a 1-0 record to the tournament after testing himself in the QFC system and coming away with an 18 second submission win



Toughest Fight: Violet Dawson


Fight to Watch: Dreamiest Panda


Early Prediction: 1st Place in Group B



Group C



Ed Wood (Mediocre Muay Thai, Competent Wrestling, BJJ Blue Belt, 212lbs)


(Jace Beleren - Best Rank 9)



Getting us started in Group C is one of the tournaments most curious fighters in Ed Wood. Wood is a light-heavyweight and hails from Hollywood, USA. He is bringing with him a very balanced style across the board and though not specialising in one particular aspect of MMA could be looking to create tactical advantages in whatever match up he finds himself in. A risky approach no doubt but with the added benefit of having his bye week first and being guided by a former Top 10 manager you must believe he knows what he is doing and it will be exciting to see what he can come up with against a varied assortment of opponents.



Toughest Fight: Zou Li


Fight to Watch: Antonio Kirby


Early Prediction: 4th in Group C



Check Conga (Respectable Boxing & Wrestling, 233lbs)


(Adam Lim - Best Rank 240)



Next is Singapore’s entry into the tournament with small heavyweight Check Conga. Conga has respectable Boxing and Wrestling and might either be looking for a clinch based approach or a sprawl and brawl type tactic. Though his manager isn’t inexperienced by any means he will find himself amongst possibly most competitive group in that aspect and may struggle against the groups specialists. His most exciting match up could be against Ed Wood who looks to be most similar on paper.



Toughest Fight: James Isaac Abraham


Fight to Watch: Ed Wood


Early Prediction: 5th in Group C



Antonio Kirby (Wonderful Wrestling, 215lbs)


(Tony Sassano - Best Rank 60)



It wouldn’t be a creation tournament without a fighter from Tony Sassano’s famous Kirby camp and for this opening season of the NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix we have Antonio Kirby representing. With an experienced manager with a solid history in tournaments and with a particular style of fighter, Kirby looks to be an early favourite to qualify though his bogeyman could possible be BJJ Blue Belt Ed Wood.



Toughest Fight: Ed Wood


Fight to Watch: Zou Li


Early Prediction: 1st in Group C



Zou Li (Wonderful Muay Thai, 252lbs)


(Alexander Melciott - Best Rank 38)



From Bozhou, China we have heavyweight Muay Thai specialist Zou Li and he is guided by former Top 50 manager Alexander Melchiott. Li is one of two Muay Thai fighters in the group and a potential five star match up could be against his mirror match up James Isaac Abraham though his toughest fight to win will no doubt be against Kirby who he has had the misfortune to draw early in the schedule. The outcome of that fight could really set the tone of Li’s tournament campaign so it will be very interesting to see what happens.



Toughest Fight: Antonio Kirby


Fight to Watch: James Isaac Abraham


Early Prediction: 2nd in Group C



James Isaac Abraham (Wonderful Muay Thai, 215lbs)


(James Isaac Abraham - Best Rank 68)



Our last fighter in Group C is James Isaac Abraham, a light-heavyweight Muay Thai fighter from Manilla, Philippines and he is managed by current Top 100 manager of the same name.


In many ways, Abraham’s predictions mirror that of Zou Li and it’s hypothesised that their showdown could determine who escapes from this group of death along with Antonio Kirby although there is a long, long road ahead for this tournament and things can change in the blink of an eye.



Toughest Fight: Antonio Kirby


Fight to Watch: Zou Li


Early Prediction: 3rd in Group C



Group D



Barry Bludgeon (Proficient Boxing, Competent Wrestling, 260lbs)


(FueL4 Hatered - Best Rank 193)



Massive heavyweight New Zealander Barry Bludgeon is our first fighter in Group D and at 6ft 9 inches tall and weighing in at 260lbs it’s likely that he will be packing some serious raw power. Bludgeon is proficient in Boxing and competent in wrestling and could either be looking for the clinch or just simply sprawl and brawl of which he would definitely need having been drawn in a group with three wrestlers. If Bludgeon can score points in those match ups then he stands a chance of qualifying but he will really need to rely on landing those big hammers of his early to do so. Bludgeon also benefits from an early bye week which will help him decide on where to focus his training early on



Toughest Fight: Kenji Kozlov


Fight to Watch: Piotr Maczynski


Early Prediction: 3rd in Group D



Piotr Maczynski (Feeble Boxing, Superb Wrestling, 180lbs)


(Tomasz Pudz - Best Rank 372)



Next up is Polish welterweight Piotr Maczynski who comes into the tournament with a record of 2-0 from the QFC system. A good start no doubt but one that could also come back to haunt him as the other fighters in the group may feel confident of forming a game plan to beat him. Maczynski could struggle in this group as he faces off against other specialists and he will need to pick up points against the wrestlers in order to stand a chance of qualifying for the next round. With the groups least experienced manager that could be a lot to ask



Toughest Fight: Kenji Kozlov


Fight to Watch: Barry Bludgeon


Early Prediction: 5th in Group D



Richard Volg (Wonderful Boxing, 188lbs)


(Felipe Galaccio - Best Rank 83)



From Oslo, Norway we have light middleweight Richard Volg who will be bringing some wonderful boxing skills with him. Elsewhere I would predict Volg to have a tough time in the group consisting of much better wrestlers but with a manager that has climbed into the Top 100 in only a few short months I am predicting some good results for this young fighter. His toughest match up is without question likely to be against wrestler Kenji Kozlov but also Robert Burner and for Volg to qualify he will almost certainly need maximum points in at least one of those fights.



Toughest Fight: Kenji Kozlov


Fight to Watch: Barry Bludgeon


Early Prediction: 2nd Place in Group D



Kenji Kozlov (Wonderful Wrestling, woeful Muay Thai, 225lbs)


(John Stevens - Best Rank 33)



Next up is Kenji Kozlov from Madagascar, a 225lbs wrestler and early favourite to take first place in Group D. As one of only two wrestler in the group it is his managers pedigree that really gives Kozlov the edge in this group and he is fully expected to move into the knockout stages at the very least. His main competition is likely to be against fellow wrestler Robert Burner but one match up that has us very excited is against boxer Richard Vlog which is likely to play a significant part in the final standings.



Toughest Fight: Robert Burner


Fight to Watch: Richard Volg


Early Prediction: 1st Place in Group D



Robert Burner (Wonderful Wrestling, 220lbs)


(Ray Roshington - Best Rank 284)



Our final fighter of the tournament is Canadian wrestler Robert Burner. At first glance Burner seems to be a pure wrestler with no real experience in submissions so we are to presume that Burner will be looking to ground and pound his way to victory at least initially. His style could lead to some advantageous match ups in the group although his managers credentials are unknown and as a result could trip him up in some of those matches. He faces tough competition from fellow wrestler Kenji Kozlov and boxer Richard Vlog.



Toughest Fight: Kenji Kozlov


Fight to Watch: Richard Volg


Early Prediction: 4th Place in Group D

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awesome write up, i hope to not let down the prediction since toughest fights in all of my division is said to be me and i am not too sure about that, i have an interesting division to say the least with 3 wrestlers and one boxer/wrestler mix. I have the round 2 bye so im hoping that my first match goes that way i want/expect than i will have extra training before my next fight.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Best pre-tourney write-ups ever! Good to see that Ed Wood isn't giving away too much yet. He'll need training, good hiddens and luck to pull off his game plan, but at least his first opponent won't know what to expect.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OH YES! Great way to build this into something really special! Gratz indeed!the great work.

 

BUT...nope, not aiming for fourth place; Shift someone else down please! :)

 

I think this tournament will set the standard and this type of league format is MUCH more interesting than a knock out deal.

 

Thanks for the great work...see you in the cage!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/11/11b15.jpg Antoine "La Casserole" Pierre (333610)

 

 

We caught up with late comer to the event Antoine Pierre today. Rumors are circulating that he did not have any troubles getting his visitors Visa to the USA as his manager Ibrahim Camara had at first stated.

 

Sources close to NJMMA confirm that Pierre has been having a heated affair with French Anchor woman Dashia Solani from LV3 TV. We reached out to both the organization and the TV station but everyone refuses to comment. But word on the street is that Pierre was almost 3 weeks late to his training camp because he was vacationing in Los Cabos with Solani, who has been well known to have affairs with the MMAT elite.

 

9f3dea873b8d914cef8514f4776a4f7f.jpg

 

We finally caught up with Pierre this week back at his gym in NYC to get the facts about this situation:

 

Interviewer: Antoine, your manager has entered you in this tournament super last minute. What is going on? The callout for sign ups went out almost a month ago. Why the delay?

 

La Casserole: Sak Pase mon frere? Why everybody want to know about mes affaires? Do you see me going to your house and snoop around? Jalousie ! I was late, so what ? I sign no? C est quoi le probleme?

 

Interviewer: It seems like everywhere we go Dashia Solani is fucking some MMA fighter. Was that the case? Fans and media spotted you both in Los Cabos partying it up !!!

 

La Casserole: Yo bro, soyons serieux. That bitch got so gaped by Rich Piano in Vegas why would a brotha like me want to touch that? She probably has STD up her bom bom bro. In Haiti we got a word for that: AIDS. Non merci. Insert sausage floating Gif.

 

Interviewer: Antoine, they call you The Casserole. Some say your top game is suffocating and you are already being forecasted to finish first in your group. Even though some experts have named your group The Group of Death. Any thoughts?

 

La Casserole: Mon ami, you think I come to play? Mon frere Wilky Pierre and I are gonna win our tournois respectifs. We were not partying, here is some footage of our special training techniques from Master Kevin Spacey:

 

http://footage.framepool.com/shotimg/qf/452102184-body-building-bodybuilder-flirting-fooling-around.jpg

 

Yeahhhhh BABY !!!! Lots of sparring going down !!!!

 

ryanlueclarke_trinidad.jpg?resize=600%2C

 

 

 

 

 

Interviewer: DAMN SON !!! Good luck !!!

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks to a very, very generous donation of 500k to the Prize Pool by Mr.Moss (owner of the Sportivite brand of tycoon clothing) the grand totals now stand at

 

1st Place - 3 Months VIP + 300k

2nd Place - 225k

3rd Place - 150k

4th Place - 75k

 

Thanks again to Mr.Moss!

Amazing! Will support your store in turn.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix


Season 1: Episode 1 (Group Stage Round 1) – Preview



Group A



Rogerio De Souza (0-1/0-0 in season, 196lbs) vs. Early Grayce (1-0/0-0 in season, 222lbs)



Kicking off the very first season of the Open Weight Grand Prix we have Jiu-Jitsu versus wrestling with 0-1 Rogerio De Souza taking on 1-0 Early Grayce.



De Souza is a pure BJJ fighter who has already found out the hard way the perils of stand up fighting when he was KO’d in just five seconds by a head kick in the QFC system. Obviously not an ideal start to his MMA career, De Souza will now try to not only get past that recent disappointment but also take on one of Group A’s early favourites in wrestler Early Grayce although this is a fight that has been highlighted as a potential bogie fight for Grayce and one in which De Souza could look to pick up maximum points from.



Grayce has already picked up a win in the QFC system and looks every bit the strong, ground and pound wrestler you’d expect from him but here in this opening round Gracye has been drawn in quite possibly his least favoured match up and may need to drastically rethink his approach to the fight unless he really fancies his chances of going head to head with a BJJ Brown Belt.



Grayce is managed by a former number one manager so his chances of coming away from this fight with at least a point is that much higher but should he insist on going full steam ahead against the superior submission fighter he runs a big risk of getting finished and coming away with nothing. De Souza will be looking to these fights against wrestlers to pick up maximum points and with little to fear on the ground we should expect him to be aggressive in whatever way he approaches this fight.



Prediction: De Souza by Submission



Ruud Huisbrink (0-0/0-0 in season), 277lbs) vs. Gargan Morus (0-0/0-0 in season, 221lbs)



Our second match up in Group A is another that has been earmarked as a potential fight to watch with heavyweight Thai boxer Ruud Huisbrink taking on unknown striker Gargan Morus who at 221lbs is not a small man himself.



Ruud Huisbrink is one of the heavier fighters in this tournament and by far the heaviest in the group. As a result, he is likely going to be packing some serious power behind his strikes and that could be the defining factor in this match up against Morus who isn’t currently on the same level technically in the Muay Thai.



Gargan Morus is a completely unknown quantity at this point. Bringing with him a respectable level of both wrestling and Muay Thai it’s likely that he is going to be a clinch specialist but it’s also possible that his wrestling is for defences purposes in order to keep the fight standing and land a KO blow.



This should be a great fight between two similarly matched opponents and two similarly experienced managers. With such a weight advantage it’s likely that Morus will want to keep inside and away from any stray hay-makers from the Dutchman and use his speed and conditioning to wear him down from the clinch. Huisbrink’s strength is very likely to come into play however and with an overall advantage in the Muay Thai he is predicted to come away with a win here tonight though this is a fight that Morus will also want to be picking up maximum points from and knowing that he will get a chance to rest up after this fight with his bye week scheduled next, Morus could potentially be going all out for the win.



Prediction: Huisbrink by KO



Group B



“Alien Body” Ben Reed (0-0/0-0 in season, 160lbs) vs. Antoine Pierre (1-0/0-0 in season, 222lbs)



Our first fight of Group B features lanky Muay Thai fighter Ben Reed taking on light-heavyweight submission wrestler Antoine Pierre.



Ben Reed is a fighter predicted to struggle in this group but the difficulty of this opening match up for him really comes down to the take down abilities of his opponent. Reed has a feeble amount of wrestling to help him stay on his feet but at only 160lbs and being the lightest fighter in the tournament the likelihood of him knocking out his larger, heavier opponents is greatly diminished.



His opponent Antoine Pierre had a later start to his tournament and as a result has had almost two weeks less time to prepare. He is guided by a former Top 10 manager so he definitely has that going for him and he has already racked up one in the win column after a stunning first round submission in the QFC system so it is no surprise to learn that Pierre has been noted as one of the early favourites to secure qualification out of this group.



As mentioned before, this fight hinges on the take down abilities of Pierre as without them he is likely to be a sitting duck against Reed’s superior Thai boxing skills and with the added negative of coming into the tournament late may not have had the required time to properly address any immediate holes in his game.


However, with over 60lbs weight advantage it’s unlikely that Pierre will come away with nothing and with such an advantage on the ground, one take down is likely all he would need to really put Reed under insurmountable pressure.



Prediction: Pierre by Submission



“The Sophisticated” Violet Dawson (1-0/0-0 in season, 189lbs) vs. Dreamiest Panda (0-0/0-0 in season, 300lbs)



Rounding out Group B’s opening round is a striker versus grappler affair with either transgender or women’s rights activist (we’re not quite sure yet) Violet Dawson taking on rotund Japanese wrestler Dreamiest Panda.



Violet Dawson is coming into this fight with a winning 1-0 record after a very impressive clinch display in the QFC system leading to a second round KO over his debut opponent. He has some wonderful Muay Thai skills which put him ahead of everyone else in the group but Dawson might feel a little aggrieved at his opening match up against wonderful wrestler Panda.



Panda, who will be making his first appearance as a professional in this tournament, is an absolute butterball at 300lbs and 150cms. With a high level of wrestling and a BJJ blue belt to supplement Panda is likely to be a force in the group although it’s possible his size and weight might become a hindrance against lighter and more durable opponents in later stages.



This is definitely not the match up Violet Dawson would have wished for to open his tournament with. To advance, Dawson is going to need to beat one of the two wrestlers in the group and might feel that Panda’s 110lb weight advantage could be used against him but with almost no wrestling credentials to speak of, Dawson is likely to end up under the massive girth of Dreamiest Panda at some point during this bout and from there it surely wouldn’t take long for Panda to get the finish. Panda also has the advantage of knowing that his bye week is next and could perhaps look to fight a more cautious but less energy efficient fight in order to secure the win



Prediction: Panda by Finish



Group C



Check Conga (0-0/0-0 in season, 233lbs) vs. James Isaac Abraham (0-0/0-0 in season, 215lbs)



In Group C we have Singapore heavyweight Check Conga going head to head with one of the possible favourites of the pack in James Isaac Abraham and this is expected to be a tough fight for Conga.



Check Conga, unknown and as yet untested, is a little on the small side for a heavyweight but will still be around 18lbs heavier on the night and if this translates into any kind of advantage tactically he will surely need it against Abrahams expertise in Muay Thai. Conga possesses both respectable boxing and wrestling but it is more likely that his wrestling is more defensive then offensive. This assumption leads to another and that is that Conga is going to be looking to do the bulk of his damage in the clinch.



His opponent James Isaac Abraham will also be making his professional debut tonight and as such very little is known about him too except for the fact that he will be bringing some wonderful Muay Thai skills with him and will be guided by a current top 100 manager. Abraham is also one of a handful of fighters predicted to do well in the group which is also, arguably, one of the most competitive out of all the draws.



Stylistically Conga might have the upper hand in that he should be able to survive long enough at range to get in close and clinch up with Abraham in order to do some damage but as previously mentioned, Abraham has an experienced team behind him and as such is likely to put together a very good game plan which could see him try to stay on the outside and string together some decent shots from there. Of course this is all hypothetical at this point as neither fighter has been seen in action but the predictions set out at the beginning of this tournament say that this is a tough match up for Conga and one that he will do well to come away with any points at all.



Prediction: Abraham by TKO



Antonio Kirby (0-0/0-0 in season, 215lbs) vs. Zou Li (1-0/0-0 in season, 252lbs)



Our last fight of Group C is likely to be an absolutely brutal affair with two of the top picks from the group going head to head early and this one is definitely going to have some impact on the final standings of each fighter. Wrestler Antonio Kirby takes on Chinese heavyweight striker Zou Li



Antonio Kirby comes into this competition as an unknown quantity but it is what’s known about his management that is enough to label him a threat early. Coming from a camp with a strong history in creation tournaments and with a relatively successful, tried and tested game plan, Antonio Kirby could be the man to beat in this division and tonight he gets the opportunity to put a dent in the qualification hopes of fellow favourite Zou Li



Zou Li enters the tournament with a record of 1-0 and it must be said that he looked extremely exciting in his debut victory in the QFC system, managing to pick up a first round TKO in under a minute to the approval of the crowd. At 252lbs Zou Li is the heaviest fighter in this group and is also predicted to compete for second place with James Isaac Abraham. He will be bringing some high level Muay Thai along with him but it’s fair to say that his first fight here tonight is probably the worst one he could have hoped for at such an early stage.



Zou Li’s manager is no stranger to creation tournaments either though and is just as experienced as Kirby’s overall. With almost a 40lb weight advantage he stands possibly the best chance out of all the others in the group of getting a KO finish here against the wrestler Kirby but it is a massive undertaking and one that seems unlikely at this early stage of the tournament and without any real wrestling credentials to help him keep the fight standing. The one positive that he may take into this unfavourable match up is that he will get a chance to rest up with his bye week scheduled next no matter what the result.



Prediction: Kirby by TKO



Group D



Piotr Maczynski (2-0/0-0 in season, 180lbs) vs. Robert Burner (0-0/0-0 in season, 220lbs)



Next up we have undefeated Polish brawler Piotr Maczynski taking on wrestler Robert Bruner who will be making his debut.



At 2-0, Maczynski is the most experienced fighter in the tournament and has obviously done well in the early stage of his career. His first fight was a one sided decision victory over three rounds and his second, he secured a first round TKO in just over two minutes. In both fights he showcased a very tidy and efficient clinch game and was able to utterly overwhelm and dominate.



His opponent is Robert Burner, a very small heavyweight wrestler from Canada who could probably make the 205lbs limit if he laid off the poutine. Burner has yet to step foot inside the cage and very little is known about him or his manager currently so we are very excited to see just what he can bring to the table here tonight.



As an undefeated fighter it would be the obvious choice to pick Maczynski as the favourite going into this one, however, he has not yet faced an opponent with the grappling calibre of Burner and as such will likely face his first real test inside the cage. Strikers versus grapplers usually favour the wrestler slightly and Burner is the better in that department but Maczynski is superb in that area too and it will be interesting to see if he can keep this fight on the feet. A tough first fight and one that Burner may be confident of picking up maximum points from.



Prediction: Burner by finish



Richard Volg (0-0/0-0 in season, 188lbs) vs. Kenji “The Wolf” Kozlov



We end the evening in Group D with a potential fight of the night between two early favourites Richard Volg and Kenji Kozlov and this is another fight that is expected to severly impact the final standings of the group.



Richard Volg will be making his debut here tonight and all that we know about him is that he is a very well regarded boxer with some wonderful striking skills. At 188lbs he is one of the smaller fighters of the group but should still have enough behind his punches to cause some damage when he connects. He is guided by a current Top 100 manager and has been predicted to be one of the fighters moving out of the group stages at the end.



His opponent Kenji Kozlov was earmarked as a potential forerunner from Group D and though that prediction still stands it has become apparent that Kozlov wasn’t quite what was first expected and has been seen to be diligently improving his boxing over the last week or so leading us to believe that he could be looking to mix it up at least on the feet here tonight. That of course would make it a very different match up entirely and could very well lower his chances against Volg but Kozlov’s manager is another one known for his experience in creation tournaments and will no doubt have a decent game plan ahead of time as well as the advantage of a bye week for the next event.



If it turns out that Kozlov is planning to stand with Volg as opposed to taking him down and finishing him there then Volg’s chances of victory would go up significantly. With little wrestling knowledge himself he would likely have had almost no defence to stop the take down but on his feet he must be considered the favourite. This could be a very exciting turn of events and we absolutely cannot wait to see the truth of the matter.



Prediction: Kozlov by Dec

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - S01E01 Results



Group A



Week 1 Results



Early Grayce defeated Rogerio De Souza by KO at 1:34 of Round 1


Gargan Morus defeated Ruud Huisbrink by TKO at 1:08 of Round 1



Group Standings



Early Grayce (1-0 = 3pts)

Gargan Morus (1-0 = 3pts

Ruud Huisbrink (0-1 = 0pts)

Rogerio De Souza (0-1 = 0pts)

Blaise Cailloux (0-0 = 0pts)


Group B


Week 1 Results


Antoine Pierre defeated Ben Reed by Submission at 0:46 of Round 1

Dreamiest Panda defeated Violet Dawson by TKO at 5;34 of Round 1


Group Standings


Antoine Pierre (1-0 = 3pts)

Dreamiest Panda (1-0 = 3pts)

Ben Reed (0-1 = 0pts)

Violet Dawson (0-1 = 0pts)

Manager Yanic (0-0 = 0pts)


Group C


Week 1 Results


James Isaac Abraham defeated Check Conga by KO at 0:24 of Round 1

Zou Li defeated Antonio Kirby by Unanimous Decision


Group Standings


James Isaac Abraham (1-0 = 3pts)

Zou Li (1-0 = 2pts)

Antonio Kirby (0-1 = 1pts)

Check Conga (0-1 = 0pts)

Ed Wood (0-0 = 0pts)


Group D


Week 1 Results


Piotr Maczynski defeated Robert Burner by Unanimous Decision

Kenji Kozlov defeated Richard Volg by KO at 1:33 of Round 1


Group Standings


Kenji Kozlov (1-0 = 3pts)

Piotr Maczynski (1-0 = 2pts)

Robert Burner (0-1 = 1pts)

Richard Volg (0-1 = 0pts)

Barry Bludgeon (0-0 = 0pts)
  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix


Season 1: Episode 2 (Group Stage Round 2) – Preview



Group A



Early Grayce (2-0/1-0 in season, 222lbs) vs. Ruud Huisbrink (0-1/0-1 in season, 277lbs)



As one of the two fighters predicted to qualify from Group A, Early Grayce has gotten off to a dynamite start after making quick work of BJJ fighter Rogerio De Souza in what was predicted to be a possible bogey fight for the wrestler. After a brief feeling out period on the feet, Grayce secured the take down and was able to completely negate De Souza’s high level Jiu-Jitsu with some very powerful ground and pound. Managing to end the fight in under two minutes, Grayce has made sure to have maximum time for rest and training as he prepares for his upcoming bout as well as taking an early lead in the group standings



Ruud Huisbrink will be coming into this fight off the back of a fairly significant loss to fellow striker Gargan Morus. It was a fight that Huisbrink probably should have done better in and his performance is likely to have disappointing the big heavyweight from Holland. Beaten to the punch from the outside by Morus, Huisbrink was unable to make his reported knockout power count and was unable to contend with the accuracy of his opponent and was finished by TKO a little after in a minute into round 1. A tough result to swallow and an even worse one considering the challenge he faces next.



This match up is highly likely to favour the wrestler Grayce unless Huisbrink can pull off something quite spectacular which, realistically, he will need in order to keep his head above the water in the group. Both fighters managed to avoid picking up any injuries or cuts that would follow them into this bout and both were able to get back into the gym almost immediately after their last fights meaning that some significant tweaks could be ironed out in the training room.



Prediction: Early Grayce by TKO



Blaise Cailloux (1-0/0-0 in season, 210lbs) vs. Rogerio De Souza (0-2, 0-1 in season, 196lbs)



Making his first appearance in the tournament after an early bye week is group favourite Blaise Cailloux and the Monacan has had quite the tactical vantage point from week one coming into this next round. Cailloux has already shown a solid wrestling based submission game from his sole fight in the QFC and will no doubt be itching to lock horns with De Souza, especially after watching what fellow wrestler Early Grayce was able to do. Still, if submissions are his forte in place of a ground and pound then this would be no place for arrogance as De Souza is still surely the superior fighter in that department even though so far you wouldn’t know it.



As the only pure BJJ fighter coming into a group consisting of two strikers and two wrestlers, it was predicted that De Souza’s only hope of qualifying would be to take out the wrestlers for maximum points and somehow take away a point from his encounters with the strikers. So far De Souza is 0 for 1 against the wrestlers meaning that he really must look to walk away from this fight with a finish if he is to remain in the running to qualify and after a disastrous week 1 fight against Early Grayce, the likelihood of doing so looks much less.



Interestingly enough, De Souza has obviously been putting a little effort towards his striking and though technically is still very much a novice, he will have a slight advantage in that area going into this fight. Of course the chances of going an entire twenty minutes preventing Cailloux from getting a takedown is slim to none, the striking advantage does mean that De Souza can afford to be a little more aggressive going forward as being taken down should in theory be to his advantage. It didn’t work out that way last time out but Cailloux seems to be geared a little differently and will be looking to pick off submission attempts from the top. On paper this is actually a more difficult match up for Cailloux then De Souza but after two fairly poor performances from the man from Brazil, I feel the chances of him slipping up once again could be high.



Prediction: Cailloux by Dec





Group B



Antoine Pierre (2-0/1-0 in season, 222lbs) vs. Violet Dawson (1-1/0-1 in season, 188lbs)



Getting off to a perfect start to the season, Antoine Pierre will be coming into this bout fully rested and full of confidence. He managed to put away striker Ben Reed in under a minute and looked every bit the group favourite as predicted before the tournament start. He’ll be taking on alliance mate Violet Dawson tonight and another dominating performance could very well be on the cards.



After a solid warm up fight in the QFC where Dawson managed to follow in the footsteps of knee legend Jack Dawson and finish the fight by TKO in the second round, Violet Dawson will no doubt be disappointed to have lost that momentum in his first round match up against rotund wrestler Dreamiest Panda. Unable to get anything off from the outside, Dawson tried in vein to tie up with Panda only to be taken down just before the minute mark of round 1. From there it was one way as Dawson was unable to improve position and in the end it was the volume of strikes landed rather than the power that ended the night for him and land him joint bottom of the group without any points at all.



This fight has many of the same positives and negatives for each fighters as their first round match ups. Pierre will want this fight on the ground as soon as possible and has the advantage in the wrestling to do so. Dawson needs to striker hard and strike first and he has the advantage on the feet to do that. He will need to put Pierre away early as the longer the fight goes on the more the chance of ending up on the ground trying to fend off submission attempts.


Dawson managed to avoid anything too seriously injury wise but his was the more gruelling match up while Pierre was likely back in the gym first thing Monday morning. This will be an advantage for Pierre coming into a match up where he is already the favourite. Another tough bout for Dawson but he really needs to dig deep and try to come away with a least a point.



Prediction: Pierre by Sub




Manager Yanic (0-0/0-0 in season, 205lbs) vs. Ben Reed (0-1/0-1 in season, 160lbs)



Manager Yanic makes his first appearance this tournament and as a fighter that has yet to step into the cage it must be said that he has probably drawn the best match up that he could for his debut. Bringing with him some wonderful wrestling skills, Yanic is expected to be very competitive in this group solely off the back of that alone. He faces striker Ben Reed who has already shown signs of struggling in this tournament and with the benefit of an early bye week, Yanic has had even longer to formulate a plan.



Australian Ben Reed makes his return after a disappointing debut against Antoine Pierre where has was submitted in round 1 in just forty-six seconds. He won’t need to do much to improve upon that performance here and has managed to make a small improvement in his wrestling that can only help but overall it is going to be another very tough night for Reed unless he can somehow stop Yanic taking him down. The only real positive for Reed going into this fight as that he will have a chance to rest and work on his game for the second half of his season as his bye week is due after this fight.



Without having actually seen Yanic in action we can only theorise on what is likely to go down and the main points we need to take into account is the wrestling of which Yanic is by far the superior. Of course, both fighters are currently novices in the submission game and it’s not outside the realm of possibility that Reed could someone look for a finish there before Yanic or at the very least stall long enough to force a stand up from the referee. This is all best case for Reed however and most likely is Yanic controlling him on top using his 45lb weight advantage.



Prediction: Yanic by Dec




Group C



James Isaac Abraham (1-0/1-0 in season, 215lbs) vs. Antonio Kirby (0-1/0-1 in season, 215lbs)



Well, it’s unfortunate but it looks like it’s happening. After a gruelling twenty minute decision loss against heavyweight striker Zou Li, Group C favourite Antonio Kirby has gone awol with rumours swirling that he has not returned to London and instead has been spotted in the streets of downtown New York in a very incoherent state. The shock of the loss has obviously affected him and it looks like James Isaac Abraham will be picking up maximum points without even stepping foot in the cage.



If Kirby doesn’t return before Saturdays event nor indeed for any of his remaining match up’s it would blow this division wide open and possible even put pressure on another favourite Zou Li who had to fight hard against Kirby for just a point.



Ed Wood (0-0/0-0 in season, 212lbs) vs. Check Conga (0-1/0-1 in season, 233lbs)



After a brief opportunity to sit back and scout out his opposition, Ed Wood now makes his first appearance in the season and this fight could be a potential fight of the night. So far Ed Wood looks to be one of the most unique fighters in the tournament and with an extra two weeks of training nothing there has changed with Wood going looking to spread his skills over all areas of the fight game. With this in mind it will certainly keep his opponent tonight guessing but afterwards we all expect to have a much clearer idea of what Ed Wood is all about and his chances of progressing in the tournament.



His opponent Check Conga didn’t get off to the best of starts after losing by first round KO courtesy of James Isaac Abraham. With some reported dynamite in his hands, it was his opponent who looked to be the harder hitter of the two needing only a few solid strikes to put the heavyweight Conga away. Now, after coming away from the fight with zero points, Conga will really need to try and pick up maximum points against Wood as the rest of his match ups look to be increasingly difficult.



This is an extremely difficult match up to break down as nothing is known about Wood or what his game plan is likely to be and we only briefly saw Conga in the cage too. Possibly the most significant area of this fight could be on the ground where Wood will be bringing a blue belt level of expertise against Conga’s white belt jiu-jitsu. Elsewhere things look much more even though Conga does have a slight advantage in the wrestling and boxing. “If Kirby isn’t seen again for the remainder of this season it could be a lifeline for Conga so long as he can pick up maximum points here. The same too for Ed Wood who was predicted a 4th place finish in this group. With one potential favourite out of the running, it really opens up the door for those predicted to struggle so long of course that they can pull of something spectacular against the rest of the forerunners. For that dream to become a reality, this fight is absolutely key.



Prediction: Ed Wood by Sub



Group D



Robert Burner (0-1/0-1 in season, 220lbs) vs. Richard Volg (0-1/0-1 in season, 188lbs)



In some respects Robert Burner had perhaps the worst start to the season out of all of the fighters that competed a fortnight ago. Matched up against the predicted struggler of the group Piotr Maczynski, Burner found himself bludgeoned for an entire twenty minute period in the clinch and was unable to return fire even once nor hit a single take down during the course of the bout. Burner’s chin kept him in the fight and after a gruelling, energy draining fight he was able to walk away with a potentially valuable point but that point came at a cost and tonight Robert Burner comes into this fight having had minimal gym time and also a nagging injury that could be extremely significant.



His opponent Richard Volg will also be coming into this fight on a loss, but in stark contrast to the long, drawn out beating that Burner took, Volg was battered and swiftly dispatched of in just one minute and thirty-three seconds by group favourite Kenji Kozlov. His loss was perhaps every bit as brutal after suffering multiple knock downs from the clinch but the heart of Volg kept returning him to his feet until he could finally take no more and was kept down by a massive uppercut from Kozlov. Like Burner, Volg was unable to get much offence out and will no doubt be extremely anxious to get out there again and put that past performance behind him.



At the start of the tournament Richard Volg was one of the fighters predicted to advance but after Maczynski’s performance last time out and Volg’s own, the bookmakers could be about to change their minds. It’s unknown just how much Burner’s injury will impact his performance here as without it, this fight could have possibly favoured him against a boxer with almost no wrestling credentials. With it, Volg’s chances have increased significantly but he will need to put on a much better performance here tonight if he is to match the predictions set before the tournament start.



Prediction: Volg by KO




Barry Bludgeon (0-0/0-0 in season, 260lbs) vs. Piotr Maczynski (3-0/1-0 in season, 180lbs)



Our final fighter still yet to make his first appearance in the tournament is Barry Bludgeon, a 6ft 9inch, 260lb brawler from New Zealand. With plenty of extra time in the gym he can now begin to get his season going and this match up is yet another that could end up being quite spectacular.



Piotr Maczynski was predicted to struggle in the group but with a now overall 3-0 record he may feel that he is due a little bit more respect and he could be right although he is likely in for a very tough time tonight. Maczynski has shown a tremendous clinch game this far though it would be a fair criticism to say that he may lack power in his shots. So far that hasn’t mattered very much against fighters his own weight but tonight he will be outweighed by some 80lbs and if his opponent is as happy to brawl in the clinch as he is, that weight could be a massive obstacle for him to overcome.



This fight will really come down to whether Bludgeon wants to fight in the clinch or not. If he does then Maczynski will be in with a chance. Despite the weight advantage, he does have the better wrestling and has shown that he has the cardio to go the full two ten minutes rounds and keep up a relentless pace that would likely tire out the bigger man. Strength will be a big factor of course and if Bludgeon’s matches his size then he may be able to muscle his way through Maczynski but would still be in danger of losing a decision overall. If Bludgeon is looking to stay at distance and launch bombs then it could be a much more difficult fight for Maczynski especially if Bludgeon has the size and strength to keep him at bay. In a twenty minute fight it’s unlikely that he won’t tag the Polish fighter once and coming from a camp known for big one punch knock outs, one punch is all it might take.



Prediction: Bludgeon by KO

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

NJMMA Open Weight Grand Prix - S01E02 Results



Group A



Week 2 Results



Early Grayce defeated Ruud Huisbrink by TKO (Cut) at 1:48 of Round 1


Rogerio De Souza defeated Blaise Cailloux by Submission (Guillotine) at 1:30 of Round 1



Group Standings



Early Grayce (2-0 = 6pts)

Gargan Morus (1-0 = 3pts

Rogerio De Souza (1-1 = 3pts)

Blaise Cailloux (0-1 = 0pts)

Ruud Huisbrink (0-2 = 0pts)


Group B


Week 2 Results


Antoine Pierre defeated Violet Dawson by Submission (Triangle) at 0:55 of Round 1

Manager Yanic defeated Ben Reed by KO (Strikes) at 1:58 of Round 1


Group Standings


Antoine Pierre (2-0 = 6pts)

Dreamiest Panda (1-0 = 3pts)

Manager Yanic (1-0 = 3pts)

Ben Reed (0-2 = 0pts)

Violet Dawson (0-2 = 0pts)


Group C


Week 2 Results


James Isaac Abraham defeated Micky Kirby by Forfeit (Micky Kirby did not sign to fight)

Ed Wood defeated Check Conga by TKO (Strikes) at 2:14 of Round 1


Group Standings


James Isaac Abraham (2-0 = 6pts)

Ed Wood (1-0 = 3pts)

Zou Li (1-0 = 2pts)

Antonio Kirby (0-2 = 1pts)

Check Conga (0-2 = 0pts)


Group D


Week 2 Results


Barry Bludgeon defeated Piotr Maczynski by KO (Punch) at 2:05 of Round 1

Robert Burner defeated Richard Volg by TKO (Strikes) at 7:57 of Round 1


Group Standings


Robert Burner (1-1 = 4pts)

Barry Bludgeon (1-0 = 3pts)

Kenji Kozlov (1-0 = 3pts)

Piotr Maczynski (1-1 = 2pts)

Richard Volg (0-2 = 0pts)

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...